Xia Fan

Biography

Xia Fan (1933-2017), born Chung Hui Lan, was of Chaozhou origin in Guangdong province. She was the first film producer in the history of Chaozhou opera. In 1954, she produced and starred in the first Chaozhou-language film "Wang Jin Long," and established her own film company that same year to produce and distribute Chaozhou films in Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos. She founded several film production companies and made over 40 films in Mandarin, Cantonese, and Chaozhou across China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Southeast Asia. She also operated a wholesale film business and published a local newspaper in the 1970s. In 1977, she co-produced and supervised the classic kung fu film "Eagle Cloth Jacket." In 1986, she became the first Hong Kong film producer to invest in film production in mainland China after the reform and opening-up policy. She participated in and sponsored the first Chinese Arts Festival in 1987, and was appointed a council member of the festival foundation in 1993. She served as a municipal consultant in Shantou and honorary council member of Shantou Overseas Friendship Association from 1990 to 2012. She passed away on October 21, 2017.